Hi
I was wondering if anyone can help me, ive been offered 2 jobs in alberta, one in crowsnest pass and one in Lacombe(near Reed Dear), they both offer us different things for family life but i was wondering if anybody had any views on either place or anybody lived/visited either.

Thanks

Crowsnest Pass actually is made up of three tiny communities that are about 3.5 km apart - Coleman, Blairmore and Bellevue. It used to be a coal mining area decades ago. It's a pretty area (in the mountains) but those communities are extremely tiny about 140 km west of Lethbridge (pop. 79,000). It's a nice area to pass through, but I certainly wouldn't want to live there.

Lacombe is entirely different. Essentially, it's like a satellite town of Red Deer. IIRC, Lacombe has about 8,000 people, and is about 20 km north of Red Deer (pop. 83,000). Lacombe has no mountains around it. It is located in Alberta's "parkland", an area of farms and wood lots. Lacombe is within the Calgary-Edmonton corridor - the most populated part of the province of Alberta. Edmonton International Airport (at Leduc) is only an hour north of Lacombe, and Calgary International would be about 90 minutes to the south. I lived in Red Deer for 8 years, and I thought it was a nice place. Red Deer is a regional supply/shopping center with several large shopping malls, 2 Wal-Marts, Costco, The Home Depot, Staples.... etc.

Bottom line: Crowsnest Pass has great scenery but that's about all IMO. Lacombe is way better because of all the other places around it in close proximity.... Red Deer, Sylvan Lake, Edmonton, Calgary.

I'm with Ocean on this one. Great scenery around the Crowsnest Pass but not much else.

Lacombe had a population of 10,850 in 2005 so Ocean's memory serves him well.

If the choice was mine Lacombe wins hands down.

Cheers
Steve

So what are you family looking for out of life?

thankyou for all your replies,

There is a difference between each place, that is lacombe ill be away for 6 days, crowsnest pass home every night, as I have two young boys that is why i was considering crowsnest.

i am loking to see my children more of course, a more outdoor life but still with things for the boys to do ( clubs etc)

crowsnest pass has two great ski hills nearby, fernie and castle, and leithbridge is not far, cheap property as well.

rgds scotty 1972

Well that definitely makes the decision more difficult.

If you are into outdoor pursuits and proximity to a major center is not that important then perhaps the Crowsnest would work for you.

Time with family would be a major factor for me.

Cheers
Steve

Unless you really know what you are getting into living in the Crowsnest Pass area, I would continue my job search.

So whilst your at work and your boys at school or home what is mum looking forward to? who wil she socialize with during the day?


I can't tell you about either physical place but I'll try to help you think of the life style for all your family members.

From the company that has offered the jobs do you have contact with them to talk to about family life?
Is there any website or school websites where you could ask questions?
are you religious? As some of the smaller town communities are and a lot of activities are done around the churches.

We met online a school teacher online from outside of Winnipeg who helped answer loads of questions. So try to track some one down.

I'm not sure about anyone else but our day to day lives focus around work/school/homework/shopping/household chores/kids sports. Which doesn't depend on scenery or physically location.

How young are your boys? do the have a favorite sport/hobby/pastime?






I suppose if your family is used to and happy with a quite life the rural aspect might be good but if you're city folk used to seeing plenty of people it might be a large culture shock at first.

Thankyou for all the info .....
We think that we have to go and visit these places to see what they are like.
My boys are 3 and 5 very adventurous,they love the outdoors fishing and camping etc.
At the moment we live on the outskirts of a town,we are not pub people and like to have a drink with friends and neighbours at home.My wife stays at home looking after the little one and does a lot of home studying.We find it easy to make friends and to socialize where ever we go ,we are not ones to stay in and mope about .
We are flying out sometime in the New Year ,just to see how cold it realy is .... lol..

Happy Xmas and a Happy New Year to everyone

That will only tell you what the weather is like when you are there, Alberta (well at least southern Alberta) has the most variable winter climate in the world. It can be calm and cold one day (-35 C).... then warm and windy two days later (+10 C).

good luck, have fun and enjoy the adventure.

I have only been through Crowsnest pass once (2004) on our recce trip, I would be worried about getting snowed in, I don't know if this would happen and also hubby and I are too chicken to take a scenic drive to the mountains from Red Deer as it is (this is due to a trip we took last year up highway 2 and nearly ended in a ditch - the roads were clear and the day bright and sunny ) - so depending on how comfortable you are with driving on ice roads is something to consider too. As for Lacombe nice little town with all the usual ammeneties you would get in an English market town. One thing to consider too is taxes, I know Lacombe residents pay more tax than Red Deer ones as there are not as many people to share the bill around with. Also with Slumberger about to build the largest oil field thingy in central Alberta at Blackfalds (between Lacombe and Red Deer) I would imagine that Lacombe will get a fair bit bigger too. Hope this helps a little. Oh - congrats on the job offers